WATER WAR: A Map of the Battlefield and a Brief History

The ongoing litigation between the Fairfax County Water Authority  (FCWA) and the City of Falls Church is essentially a battle of words and documents, fought under the soft lights and within the portrait-lined walls of Courtroom 5E.

But the battlefield of the Water War extends far beyond the confines of the Fairfax County Courthouse.   As is the case in nearly every war, the struggle cannot be fully understood without a map.

Plaintiff”s Exhibit No. 2, here slightly reduced, provides an excellent view of the entire “theater of operations.”  All of the City’s water service area is shown, except for a small portion extending along the Arlington border to the Potomac.  

The areas served by Fall Church’s system are in green, with the City itself shown in a darker shade.  Areas served by Fairfax Water are in blue.   The Town of Vienna, which also operates a water system, is shown in orange.  Portions of its service area that extend into Fairfax County appear in a lighter shade.

Blue lines show FCWA water mains, some which extend through Falls Church’s service area.  Important parcels of land are shown and labeled in red.   The small red asterisks denote two Fairfax Water properties just north of Route 50 that are serviced by the City.

The Town of Falls Church began operating a water system in portions of Fairfax County in the 1930s.   These areas extended beyond the limits of the City when it was established in 1948, though exactly how far the lines then reached into the County is unclear.   

Falls Church, recognizing that it was very small, attempted to extend its domain through a “war of annexation” against Fairfax, but was defeated in court in 1951.  However, the City maintained control of the water system, which continued to expand into the County.     

Fairfax Water was established in 1957 and soon came into conflict with the City over water rights, filing against Falls Church in 1959.   This litigation resulted in the  establishment of definite boundaries between the two systems, a treaty which was in effect for 30 years.      

One of the mysteries for future historians is why the agreement was not renewed when it expired in 1989.  In any event, peace reigned between the parties for the rest of the millenium. 

The current war began when a dispute broke out over which system would service the proposed Halstead development,  just west of Gallows Road and adjacent to a FCWA water main, but located in an area historically served by Falls Church.  Early in 2007  the City filed a federal lawsuit against the Authority, alleging it retained exclusive rights over the entire service area as established in 1959.

Falls Church lost its case and subsequent appeal, but according to FCWA, continued to maintain its claim of exclusivity.  Fairfax Water then filed against the City in December 2008 and submitted an amended complaint in January.

Throughout the course of both actions the City has maintained that Fairfax Water’s real intention is to drive it out of the County and out of the water business entirely.

The stakes for Falls Church are very high.  Its system services over 100,000 people who live outside its borders and some of the most lucrative properties in Northern Virginia, including Tysons I and Fairview Park.  Loss of all or even a portion of the system might financially cripple the City.   

Fairfax Water, having prevailed in federal court, believes it now has the right to compete with Falls Church for customers.  In separate counts deferred until February it is seeking $21 million in damages against the City due to alleged delays in starting the Halstead project.

In the count currently before the Court the Authority is arguing that the City’s practice of transferring water system profits to its General Fund is unconstitutional.